Mr. Poolpat Leesombatpaiboon, Secretary General of the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) and ERC Spokesperson, revealed the progress of the green electricity project. The ERC has established Utility Green Tariff (UGT) categorized into UGT 1 and UGT 2. UGT 1 is for electricity users who do not specify the power plant when applying for the service (does not specify the power plant name), while UGT 2 is for electricity users who specify the source of electricity (specifies the power plant name). The ERC held a public hearing on the tariffs in January 2024, and subsequently opened for those interested to start purchasing UGT 1 electricity.
Currently, there are more than 10 businesses, mostly large data center operators, have expressed interest in using green electricity and have held discussions with the ERC. These businesses are located both within and outside the Eastern Economic Corridor (EEC).
While the electricity authorities have not issued Renewable Energy Certificates (RECs) to any electricity buyers yet, the ERC expects trading of UGT 1 electricity to begin by the end of 2024.
UGT 1 is composed of Normal tariff (Base electricity rate and Ft) + Premium service charge of 0.0594 baht per unit. Premium charge is composed of REC market price of 0.0500 baht per unit and Administration fee of 0.0094 baht per unit.
The source of UGT 1 electricity is from 7 hydropower plants operated by the Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand (EGAT) with production capacity of 1,300-3,500 gigawatt per year. Eligible buyers include Category 3, 4 and 5 electricity users, or large and medium-sized industrial enterprises. Power purchase agreement (PPA) has a term of 1 year.
UGT 2 is divided into Group A and Group B. Group A is a tariff for electricity purchased from power plants that commenced commercial operation (COD) in 2025-2027, at a rate of 4.5622 baht per unit. Group B is a tariff for electricity purchased from power plants that COD in 2028-2030, at a rate of 4.5475 baht per unit.
The source of UGT 2 electricity is power plants in the "Power Project Procurement from Renewable Energy Sources under a FiT Scheme between 2022-2030 for Power Plants with No Fuel Costs". The production capacity for Group A is 2,386 megawatts (MW) and for Group B is 2,466 MW. Eligible buyers include Category 4 and 5 electricity users, or large industrial enterprises. The power purchase agreement has a term of 10 years. However, when purchasing green electricity under this scheme, buyers will receive RECs issued by the Electricity Authority.
The purchase of electricity under UGT 2 will only occur once the green power plants in the " Power Project Procurement from Renewable Energy Sources under a FiT Scheme between 2022-2030 for Power Plants with No Fuel Costs" that ERC has previously procured, with a total capacity of 4,852.26 MW, start generating electricity into the system. The first group will start generating electricity into the system in 2025 and the second group in 2028 onwards.
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